How Running Helps With Both Your Physical And Mental Health

The month of May is Mental Health Month and Mental Health America has chosen to focus on the integration and physical health and mental health. It’s timely as physical health and mental health providers are working closer together than ever to provide a more integrated, holistic approach. I am a runner and a therapist who has personally experienced how the two can affect each other and how healing your physical health can be a powerful antidote for your mental health.

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The first time I decided to give running a try I laced up my shoes, walked to Central Park, got to what looked like a good place to run and went for it. About 2 minutes in I decided I deserved a walking break, eventually self-diagnosing weak ankles and concluding it just wasn’t for me. It hurt, I was tired and wasn’t exactly sure where or what I was running to. I remember watching the New York City Marathon for the first time. My sister suggested we go cheer and I said to myself, “Now this is something I will never do.” These were a different breed of people and I just didn’t get how running some obscene amount miles was a good idea.

Fast forward 9 years. I have completed three World Major Marathons, about to start training for my fourth, completed 17 half marathons and about 60 other shorter courses. Lesson one: never say never.

Here are 5 more ways running has taught me life lessons and shaped my mental health.

Let go and trust the process

African American woman tying her shoelaces before running

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When I signed up for my first half marathon in Spring of 2011, I really didn’t know if I could run 13.1 miles. I had never run a mile straight through. My coworker had been training for the NYC Marathon for the past 4 months and when I asked her how you train for one the conversation went like this. “You just do it” “You just do it?” “Yea, you just do it.” She sent me the Hal Higdon Half Marathon training plan and I followed it precisely. I had no idea if this would actually work, but I had to trust that I was disciplined enough and could be physically strong enough and as I would find out, mentally tough enough to reach this goal. I had been a therapist for about three years at this point and was constantly asking my clients to work towards goals they felt were unachievable. I felt it was only fair to challenge myself to my own journey.

The journey is as valuable as the destination

Group of people running track together in a park

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After completing my first half, I decided to qualify for the 2012 NYC Marathon through the NYRR 9+1 program. I qualified, dedicated months to training and it got canceled. Hurricane Sandy had wreaked havoc on NYC the week before the marathon and the city needed to allocate resources to the victims. It was one of those moments where I understood why it had to happen, but was still sad and disappointed that I would not get to put all my months of hard work to use. It had not only been a physically taxing process, but mentally exhausting. Training for a marathon pushes you to really get to know yourself; in addition to showcasing your strength, it exposes your vulnerabilities. It challenges you to fight the thoughts in your head that tell you: ‘stop,’ ‘you can’t,’ ‘this is too hard’ and trains you to keep on pushing. Fear and self-doubt are strong, but I had to be stronger. It teaches you to listen when your body needs rest or is in pain and needs care. It forces you to accept your limits, while gently pushing them at the same time. I taught my body how to run 20 miles, prepared to go the full 26.2. I loved and appreciated what it could do and had to accept that there would be no grand finale. When the time came to decide if I would do it again, I knew I owed it myself to complete what I had started. With the support of my amazing, dedicated running community, I did it all over. I ran the New York City Marathon in 2013 and crossing that finish line is one of the most powerful moments I have ever experienced. It was a two and half year journey to get there, but it has transformed me to believe in myself in ways I will always be thankful for.

You are stronger than you think you are

Fit woman exercising in city industrial district in Amsterdam - determination and strength lead to success

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Running has taught me what I need to recover from a difficult moment. I ran the Berlin Marathon the Summer of 2016 and was prepared and trained…so I thought. I started off very confident and was doing well for most of it; however, somewhere around mile 15 I was moving slower and hurting more than I should have been. That day was warmer than I hoped so knew it would be tough, but became frustrated that this was happening. That moment opened the floodgates of negative thoughts and suddenly I felt that I was moving backwards. I had to regain control over my mind or this would not end well. I went over my mantra “You are stronger than you think you are.” I didn’t finish in the time that I hoped, but what mattered in that moment is that I did not let the voices in my head win and take this experience from me. I had to believe the strength existed in me and fight for it. Yes, I finished.

There are lessons in your failures

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Running has brought me so many proud moments; it has also brought me many humbling ones. After a race that doesn’t go as planned, it’s best to reflect and ask yourself what happened. Running doesn’t really lie and it’s hard to outsmart. The hills do not bend to your excuses and the weather does not care what you had planned; you did the miles or you didn’t. Running doesn’t get easier, you get smarter. Stay hydrated, wear proper shoes, don’t start off too fast, push hard in the end, strength train, and respect the distance. The importance of these lessons were learned the hard way, but have ultimately made me a better, more disciplined runner. In life, we have to accept that not everything will go as planned but is worth finding the learning moment.

There is no finish line

One African descent woman takes water break in neighborhood park.

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This is for those that have ever felt stuck, like really stuck. You know, the “there is no light at the end of the tunnel, it just what it is, I have tried everything and see no way out” stuck. This is for those moments that feel like every scenario leads to the same dead-end road. Running has taught me that it’s never really the end. It has shown me that with patience, care, self-love, curiosity and persistence almost anything is achievable. Running has always been a bit of a litmus test for me to determine how my life is going. My 2016 running statistics reflect the stressful, difficult, struggle that was existing. In addition, I had gained weight that I had once lost and got injured as a result of not taking proper care of myself. After Berlin, I knew I needed rest and reflection. At the beginning of 2017, I wiped the slate clean and came back with a vengeance. I had allowed my body to rest and heal, set boundaries in spaces that were causing me crippling stress and used that time to engage in spaces that would guide me to a more physically and mentally healthy space. I invested in me, forcing myself to do things that were not just challenging, but scary and seemingly impossible. This included leaving the safety of my fulltime job to launch my own practice full time. I realized I wasn’t stuck, but needed to build a new path. I just completed the 2018 Brooklyn Half Marathon in 1:57:06, 36 minutes faster than my 2016 time. I will begin training for my fourth World Major Marathon in two weeks. 8 years ago I would never guessed I would be on this journey. I am not sure how far it will go or what will happen along the way, but we just keep going, learning from and embracing the process. Running is literally placing one foot in front of the other and the physical aspect of the sport has manifested in the way I think mentally as well too.

Stacey Younge, LCSW is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and owner of Sixth Street Wellness. Her private practice focuses on utilizing both traditional therapy and tele-behavioral health specializing in depression, anxiety and trauma. Stacey is a California native, runner and mental health advocate who is here to help you.

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